The National Student Clearinghouse® Research Center™regularly publishes research that supports education, workforce, and learner success. Our research offers objective data and insights about student enrollment, mobility, completion, and other important student outcomes that are visible only through the Clearinghouse data. Our nationwide network of over 3,600 postsecondary institutions provides up-to-date student-level data that represents 97 percent of the postsecondary enrollment today. Our publications are to benefit and better inform the education community, policymakers, business leaders, and other community leaders
Publication Series
Completing College
Provides a comprehensive overview of postsecondary completion trends nationally and by state. For all students who enter postsecondary education for the first time each year, it examines the diverse pathways the student traversed toward completion, as well as a degree or certificate completion rate within six and eight years of enrolling.
Last Published November 30, 2023
62.2%
The national 6-year college completion rate, counting all students at all institutions
College Closures and Student Outcomes
Building on a three-report series offering a national view of how students are affected by college closures, an interactive dashboard provides additional data insights on characteristics of closed institutions that lead to more positive student outcomes and reenrollment rates of students who became part of the Some College No Credential (SCNC) population following closure.
Published November 2, 2023
47%
Reenrollment rate following a campus closure
Stay Informed with the Latest Enrollment Information – Fall 2023
This report series continues to enable educational and policy leaders to make informed decisions through timely enrollment trend reporting that began with the COVID-19 pandemic.
Last Published October 26, 2023
2%
Increase in postsecondary enrollment from a year earlier (as of 9/28/2023)
High School Benchmarks
Provides the most current data on high school graduates’ postsecondary enrollment, persistence, and completion outcomes.
Last Published September 19, 2023
52.4%
Immediate college-going rate for low income high school graduates, a 2.7 percentage point increase from the previous year
Persistence and Retention
This report series helps institutions understand first-year college persistence and retention patterns and identify disparities between different students, institutions, or states in this important early success indicator.
Last Published July 27, 2023
75.7%
First-year persistence rate for fall 2021 starters, up 0.9 percentage points over the previous cohort
Current Term Enrollment Estimates
Latest enrollment estimates for the spring of 2023 nationally and by state, reported on by institution types, student groups, and major fields.
Last Published May 24, 2023
-93,000
Decline in postsecondary enrollment, both undergraduate and graduate, from a year ago
Some College, No Credential
This report series seeks to understand the educational trajectories of millions of U.S. adults who left postsecondary education without receiving a credential and are no longer enrolled.
Last Published April 25, 2023
40.4M
Some College, No Credential population as of July 2021, up 1.4M from previous year
Yearly Success and Progress Rates
Year-by-year rates of persistence, transfer, completion, and stop-out can help states and institutions better identify effective intervention points to increase student success.
Last Published April 4, 2023
30%
Part-time beginning students no longer enrolled anywhere two years later
Undergraduate Degree Earners
Insights into undergraduate credential earners in the 2021-22 academic year by demographic and educational profiles.
Last Published March 16, 2023
-1.6%
Decline in college graduates from a year ago
Transfer and Progress
A new series on pandemic recovery, enduring enrollment impacts for economically disadvantaged students, and early outcomes for pandemic-impacted community college beginners.
Last Published March 9, 2023
78,500
Fewer community college students transferring to four-year colleges compared to fall 2020
Tracking Transfer
Latest six-year baccalaureate degree completion rate for transfer students from two- to four-year institutions is reported for the 2015 cohort of first-time degree-seeking students, analyzed by student SES and institutional characteristics.
Last Published September 20, 2022
16%
Community college beginners earning a BA in six years, an increase of 1 percentage point over last year
COVID-19: Transfer, Mobility, and Progress
Recognizing the urgency of COVID-19’s impact on students and institutions, these reports disseminate rapid response information to identify trends and raise areas of concern early enough for education and policy leaders to take corrective actions quickly.
Last Published September 13, 2022
296,200
Total two-year loss of transfer students during pandemic
Postsecondary Data Partnership Insights
The 2022 PDP Insights report focuses on two primary metrics: students’ first year credit completion ratio (CCR) and credit accumulation rate (CAR). These early momentum measures can offer insights into students’ progression toward degree completion and provide indicators of when and where gaps in ultimate degree attainment between groups may begin.
Published August 2, 2022
75%
Credits earned, on average, out of all attempted by students
Upcoming Publications
JANUARY 2024
PDP Data Insights
JANUARY 2024
CTEE: Final Look Fall 2023 Enrollment
FEBRUARY 2024
Transfer and Progress
Current Initiatives
DEI DATA LAB: A Collaborative to Advance Student Outcomes
Learn, share, and collaborate to give all students an equal opportunity to earn a degree. The National Student Clearinghouse® created the DEI Data Lab to share our nation-leading data on higher education, highlight evidence-based solutions, and encourage problem-solving partnerships.
Postsecondary Data Partnership
The Postsecondary Data Partnership is a nationwide initiative to help colleges and universities more efficiently gain a fuller picture of student progress and outcomes, meet various reporting requirements, and focus more of their resources on using data to help students.
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